Paan Singh Tomar Biography 
Paan Singh Tomar was an Indian soldier and athlete who was a seven-time national steeplechase champion in the 1950s and 1960s. Unfortunately he turned a rebel and was killed by the Indian law enforcement authorities in an encounter in 1981. He was only 49 year old then. He belongs to the list of those uncounted unsung heroes of India who gave some outstanding contributions to Indian athletics. He represented India at the 1958 Asian Games and was a strong contender for the medal. However in his middle ages, he participated in the International Military Games in 1967 and won the gold medal in the steeplechase. One among his sons served in the military. National award winning movie of 2012 - Paan Singh Tomar is a biographical film based on his life for which Irrfan Khan received national award for best actor. The movie also bagged National Film Award for Best Feature Film.
He was born in Porsa of Madhya Pradesh. He joined military and his talent as an athlete was first spotted during this period. He switched to sports quota as there were no limits on their diet. His talent was identified by his coach who trained him for steeple chasing. He was National level champion for long seven years and made a new record of 9 minutes and 4 seconds as well. The record was broken only after 10 years. Though he was a great patriot he was not allowed to participate in 1962 and 1965 wars, solely because he is a sportsman. He represented India at the 1958 Asian Games and failed to earn medal because he was not familiar with the track spikes given to him in the final event.
After retirement though he was offered a position of Military coach, he decided to stay with his family. He couldn’t get support from police for family disputes and at least he chose the path of a rebel for justice. A price of INR 10,000 was placed on his head by police and Tomar, as a true athlete was not willing to surrender. At last he and his gang members was trapped and killed by Inspector Mahendra Pratap Singh Chauhan.
Published: N/A
Updated: September 20, 2014
